This bill requires the Rhode Island Public Transit Authority to convene a coordinating council responsible for meeting the needs of low-income seniors and people with disabilities, which will develop recommendations for the appropriate and sustainable funding of the free-fare program for low-income seniors and people with disabilities.
Topic(s): Connecting Activities, Systems Coordination
This bill provides that when a child with a disability is enrolled in a postsecondary or transitional education program as part of the services provided to the child by the school committee or local education agency (LEA), and the child reaches age 21 during a school or program year, the school committee or LEA would pay for the child's schooling to the conclusion of the school or program's academic year.
Topic(s): Connecting Activities, School-Based Prep
This bill requires the Governor's Workforce Board to expand job and career opportunities for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. It also adds representatives from the Department of Behavioral Healthcare, Developmental Disabilities and Hospitals to the advisory committee of the state career pathways systems.
This bill requires that any student with a disability eligible for a Rhode Island Promise Scholarship (which funds associates degrees at the Community College of Rhode Island) be afforded all reasonable accommodations, including enrolling on a part-time basis, attaining a high school diploma/GED by age 21 and taking longer than two years to graduate with an associate's degree.
Topic(s): School-Based Prep
OSCIL provides training in self-advocacy to individuals with disabilities. This includes learning disability rights and learning to effectively communicate individual needs in a variety of circumstances.
Operating Entity: Ocean State Center for Independent Living (OSCIL)
Entity Type: Non-Profit / Community Organization
Topic(s): Youth Development & Leadership
This program trains individuals with disabilities, including transition-age youth with disabilities, in starting businesses. It consists of six classes, focusing on launching, managing, and growing businesses. It then provides technical assistance as individuals with disabilities first start small businesses.
Operating Entity: Rhode Island Developmental Disabilities Council
Entity Type: Other
Topic(s): Career Prep & Work-Based Learning
CAP helps individuals who experience problems when applying for or receiving vocational rehabilitation or independent living services. This includes advising and informing individuals of their rights and providing advocacy services.
Operating Entity: Disability Rights Rhode Island
Entity Type: Non-Profit / Community Organization
Topic(s): Connecting Activities
This program provides vocational rehabilitation services to individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing. This includes vocational counseling and guidance; vocational evaluation to determine skills, abilities, and potential to work; vocational training; purchase of hearing aids and appropriate communications devices; interpreter services for the purpose of obtaining and maintaining employment; job placement assistance; and rehabilitation technology services.
Operating Entity: Rhode Island Department of Human Services, Rhode Island Office of Rehabilitation Services
Entity Type: State Agency / Office
This program provides supported employment services to Rhode Island residents with intellectual and developmental disabilities. It focuses on providing work readiness training, preparing participants for careers playing to their strengths, developing community ties, counseling participants on career options, and engaging participants in customized training for their selected job.
Operating Entity: Easterseals Rhode Island
Entity Type: Non-Profit / Community Organization
Topic(s): Career Prep & Work-Based Learning
This program focuses on assisting participants with disabilities in obtaining self-sufficiency in adulthood. Trainings cover social and communication, self-advocacy, and self empowerment skills, as well as mobility and transportation, personal resource management, and general self-care.
Operating Entity: Ocean State Center for Independent Living (OSCIL)
Entity Type: Non-Profit / Community Organization
This program supports Parent Training and Information Centers and Community Parent Resource Centers in 12 eastern states plus DC and two territories. Services include one-to-one consultations, trainings and webinars, peer-to-peer mentoring, site visits, non-profit management tools, and more.
Operating Entity: Navigating Excellence Parent Center Assistance & Collaboration Team (NE-PACT)
Entity Type: Non-Profit / Community Organization
These programs offer students with intellectual disabilities an opportunity to take college classes, engage in career development and independent living activities, and participate in the social life of a college campus.
Operating Entity: --
Entity Type: Multi-Stakeholder Project
Project SEARCH is a one-year transition-to-work program for students with significant disabilities that includes classroom instruction, career exploration, and internship rotations. It is a collaboration between local businesses, state agencies, local school systems, and other entities, and is offered at several locations.
Operating Entity: --
Entity Type: Multi-Stakeholder Project
Topic(s): Career Prep & Work-Based Learning
This program provides technical assistance to educational teams and families who serve learners with deaf-blindness, including around preparing for transition and maximizing a child's independent living.
Operating Entity: Rhode Island College, Paul V. Sherlock Center on Disabilities
Entity Type: College / University
These four centers provide direct technical support, training, and information on transition services to school personnel in each region and assist in the development of statewide training and information activities.
Operating Entity: Rhode Island Department of Education
Entity Type: State Agency / Office
This program provides vocational rehabilitation and independent living services to individuals who are blind or visually impaired. Services include vocational counseling and guidance, career assessments, job placement and training, and more.
Operating Entity: Rhode Island Department of Human Services, Rhode Island Office of Rehabilitation Services
Entity Type: State Agency / Office
Topic(s): Career Prep & Work-Based Learning
This program provides long-term technical support for parents of individuals with disabilities, including in the areas of employment, financial management, transportation, community resources, and more.
Operating Entity: Rhode Island College, Paul V. Sherlock Center on Disabilities
Entity Type: College / University
Topic(s): Family Engagement
This program represents a collaboration of educators and service providers of students who share resources and experiences across a range of transition areas. This includes designing and managing transition programs, facilitating community and work-based instruction, coordinating services with adult agencies, and identifying best practices and overcoming disability-related barriers. It is run by the Rhode Island Secondary Transition and Employment First
Operating Entity: Rhode Island Department of Education
Entity Type: State Agency / Office
This program helps individuals with disabilities choose, prepare for, obtain and maintain employment. It involves personalized employment counseling and creating an employment plan, the provision of assistive technology, vocational training, housing and vehicle modification, and post-employment services.
Operating Entity: Rhode Island Department of Human Services, Rhode Island Office of Rehabilitation Services
Entity Type: State Agency / Office
This program provides consultation and information for those receiving disability benefits, who need help understanding eligibility and the impact work may have on their benefits.
Operating Entity: Rhode Island College, Paul V. Sherlock Center on Disabilities
Entity Type: College / University
Topic(s): Connecting Activities
OSCIL provides assistance to help 11th and 12th grade students with disabilities successfully enter the post- high school world. Services include trainings on independent living, self-advocacy, job skills, interviewing, and financial management, as well as peer support and advocacy, job shadowing, transportation assistance, and college visits.
Operating Entity: Ocean State Center for Independent Living (OSCIL)
Entity Type: Non-Profit / Community Organization
This guide provides suggestions on how to support students' mental health as they return to school.
Operating Entity: Rhode Island Department of Education
Topic(s): Mental Health
As part of its spending of Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund resources, the Rhode Island Department of Elementary and Secondary Education issued sub-grants to help local education agencies respond to the pandemic. Allowable uses for funding include providing mental health services and supports.
Operating Entity: Rhode Island Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
Topic(s): Mental Health
This document provides guidelines for school counselors providing school mental health resources during the COVID-19 pandemic. It provides counselors a three stage required reopening process, and lists best practices and requirements for both in-person and tele counseling mental health services. It also requires Rhode Island school counselors to provide transition age students with online career counseling and application services.
Operating Entity: Rhode Island Department of Education
Topic(s): Mental Health, Transition
This article discusses the neurologic symptoms of COVID-19 and what can be done to relieve symptoms and get treatment.
Operating Entity: Lifespan
Topic(s): Long-COVID